Bathtub hoax
Encyclopedia
The bathtub hoax was a famous hoax
perpetrated by the American
journalist
H. L. Mencken
involving the publication of a fictitious history of the bathtub
.
. It claimed that the bathtub had been introduced into the United States as recently as 1842, the first ones having been made of mahogany lined with lead. The article went on to describe how the introduction of the bathtub initially was greatly discussed and opposed until President Millard Fillmore
had a bathtub installed in the White House
in 1850, making the invention more broadly acceptable.
The whole article was entirely false but was still being widely quoted as fact years later, even unto the present day. The story was even referenced in a January 2008 Kia
TV ad with no mention of its fictional nature. In 1949 Mencken wrote:
, New York
, the closest town to Millard Fillmore’s birthplace in Summerhill
and the location of Fillmore’s wedding, hosts an annual celebration called Fillmore Days in July. One event involves four-wheel bathtubs racing down Main Street in honor of this hoax.
Hoax
A hoax is a deliberately fabricated falsehood made to masquerade as truth. It is distinguishable from errors in observation or judgment, or rumors, urban legends, pseudosciences or April Fools' Day events that are passed along in good faith by believers or as jokes.-Definition:The British...
perpetrated by the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
H. L. Mencken
H. L. Mencken
Henry Louis "H. L." Mencken was an American journalist, essayist, magazine editor, satirist, acerbic critic of American life and culture, and a scholar of American English. Known as the "Sage of Baltimore", he is regarded as one of the most influential American writers and prose stylists of the...
involving the publication of a fictitious history of the bathtub
Bathtub
A bath , bathtub , or tub is a large container for holding water in which a person may bathe . Most modern bathtubs are made of acrylic or fiberglass, but alternatives are available in enamel over steel or cast iron, and occasionally waterproof finished wood...
.
"A Neglected Anniversary"
On December 28, 1917, an article titled “A Neglected Anniversary” by H.L. Mencken was published in the New York Evening MailNew York Evening Mail
The New York Evening Mail was an American daily newspaper published in New York City.The paper was made up of the New York Evening Express, which dated from 1836, and the Daily Advertiser. It was eventually merged with the Evening Telegram, which became the New York World-Telegram in 1927.From New...
. It claimed that the bathtub had been introduced into the United States as recently as 1842, the first ones having been made of mahogany lined with lead. The article went on to describe how the introduction of the bathtub initially was greatly discussed and opposed until President Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States and the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office of president...
had a bathtub installed in the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
in 1850, making the invention more broadly acceptable.
The whole article was entirely false but was still being widely quoted as fact years later, even unto the present day. The story was even referenced in a January 2008 Kia
Kia Motors
Kia Motors , headquartered in Seoul, is South Korea's second-largest automobile manufacturer, following the Hyundai Motor Company, with sales of over 1.4 million vehicles in 2010...
TV ad with no mention of its fictional nature. In 1949 Mencken wrote:
The success of this idle hoax, done in time of war, when more serious writing was impossible, vastly astonished me. It was taken gravely by a great many other newspapers, and presently made its way into medical literature and into standard reference books. It had, of course, no truth in it whatsoever, and I more than once confessed publicly that it was only a jocosity... Scarcely a month goes by that I do not find the substance of it reprinted, not as foolishness but as fact, and not only in newspapers but in official documents and other works of the highest pretensions.
Fillmore Days
MoraviaMoravia (village), New York
Moravia is a village in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,363 at the 2000 census.The Village of Moravia is in the south part of the Town of Moravia and is south of Auburn, New York....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, the closest town to Millard Fillmore’s birthplace in Summerhill
Summerhill, New York
Summerhill is a town in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,217 at the 2010 census. The current town name is that of a location in Ireland....
and the location of Fillmore’s wedding, hosts an annual celebration called Fillmore Days in July. One event involves four-wheel bathtubs racing down Main Street in honor of this hoax.
Further reading
- H.L. Mencken (1949). A Mencken Chrestomathy. Alfred A. Knopf.
- H.L. Mencken (1958). The Bathtub Hoax and Other Blasts and Bravos. Alfred A. Knopf.
External links
- A transcript of the original article
- Millard Fillmore’s Bathtub in sniggle.net
- Mencken's Tub & Hot Water at Today in Literature
- A debunking at The Straight Dope
- An article explaining the history of the myth
- The bathtub hoax as an example of early "fake news" in the Columbia Journalism Review
- History of the Bathtub at the Museum of Hoaxes